WiFi on steroids? First "WhiteFi" prototypes hit testing stage

When the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) made the momentous decision late in 2008 to allow unlicensed broadcasting devices access to "white spaces" in the television spectrum, backers hailed the move as a major step forward for US wireless networking. "WiFi on steroids," was how one engineer put it during the debate. But for white space devices to move from laboratory concept to store shelves, they would need more than steroids; they would need some sophisticated engineering. That's because the FCC imposed two critical conditions: whitespace devices must sense local transmissions from televisions and wireless microphones in order to avoid transmitting on those frequencies, and the devices must also access a geolocation database of known transmitters as a backup solution in case spectrum sensing failed. Google, Microsoft, and others promptly got to work on the database, and spectrum sensing technology has already existed commercially for years. But how would a white space device—say, one located in the kitchen next to the family computer—actually communicate with the access point providing a connection to the Internet?